Persona 3: Wave
by We Thought It'd Be Funny
Summary: Hamuko Arisato wakes up and finds herself approximately one year in the past, before she knew the truth about Tartarus and The Dark Hour. To make matters even more confusing, a man, once content to sit on the sidelines, seems to know a way to let her escape her fate. Just who is this "Wave", and what is he after?
1. Chapter 1

Let's see if I can pull this off, hmm?

I do not own Persona 3.

Sincerely,

-Funny.

* * *

Fate is a funny thing.

You could be doing your own thing one minute, and the next…

Whoosh!

Wrapped up in some whirlwind adventure, trying to save the world with a ragtag group of misfits.

…Now that I think about it, maybe not the most common example.

But, you get the spirit of it, right?

We could all be living our lives, and then at the last moment, fate could come crashing into us, and alter our lives forever.

At least, that's what I believed.

Then I met someone who convinced me otherwise.

His name was…

Well, I don't want to spoil the surprise, as he'd say.

It all started when I woke up from a long nap.

A nap I wasn't supposed to wake up from.

* * *

Where does this road take me, I wonder?

Review, please.

Sincerely,

-Funny.


	2. Chapter 2

Okay, here we go.

Let's do this.

I do not own Persona 3.

Sincerely,

-Funny.

* * *

Well now. I suppose the beginning is as good of a place as any to start.

Of course, for me, the beginning is a bit murky, as it started with my death.

…Well, what did you think I meant when I said it was "A nap I wasn't supposed to wake up from"? That's kind of what I meant, you know.

Well, to be fair, it was _kind of _a death, but it also wasn't…

Honestly, the details are a bit crazy, and I don't get most of them.

Back on track. I died, stuff happened, yada yada yada…

Then…

Well…

Honestly, it was all a blur, but I remember most of it…

* * *

I woke up feeling like a lumberjack had mistaken my head for a tree, and the bright lights of the subway station did very little to alleviate that little factoid. Honestly, when I find the person who made fluorescent lights, he was going to die. Seriously.

Of course, that little train of thought didn't get far out of the station when it got hit by the freight train known as "OH TEH NOEZ IM OUT OF DA SEEL EVRY1'S GON DIEEEEE!1!111!"

Not eloquent in the slightest, but now that I'm all past it, I can afford to make a few jokes at my expense.

Immediately going into full-scale panic (In case you couldn't already tell) I whipped out my phone and started to call Mitsuru to tell her the bad news. I tried clicking over to my contacts list, muscle memory guiding my fingers…

…And I wound up at a Tetris game.

What?

I checked my phone, and sure enough, it wasn't my phone. My phone was this old, chunky, blocky pink thing, and this phone was the picture of elegance. The body was aluminum, and the blue plastic trim lit up. It almost seemed a shame to use such a beautiful phone.

Then it buzzed in my hand, catching me completely off guard.

"GAH!" I shouted, nearly dropping the phone. It automatically switched away from the Tetris game. The display now read:

"One New Message from: WAVE."

I growled and clicked "Ignore", then started punching in Mitsuru's number manually.

_Let's see, 975…_

BUZZZZZ!

_GAH!_

Once again, the phone dropped everything and the display read:

"Two New Messages from: WAVE."

I stared at the screen in confusion.

BUZZZZZ!

"Three New Messages from: WAVE."

I grumbled. Whoever this "WAVE" guy was, he probably wasn't going to leave me alone until I answered. Ignoring my brain's protests, I clicked "View".

The text stopped me dead in my tracks, and froze my brain.

It said: "_Good Morning Ms. Arisato. I your nap was pleasant. The current date is: April 6, 2009._"

…

What.

* * *

I couldn't tell you how long I sat there, just staring at that screen, not daring to believe the impossible. When my mind clicked back into action, I started to type out my reply.

"How?"

The reply came only ten seconds after I sent it.

"_Not important."_

I'm pretty sure I was scowling at that point.

"Who are you?"

Again, a swift reply:

"_Not Important."_

…Pretty sure I was officially yanked off at this point.

"Well, what IS important!?"

"_You, not missing your train. You have, what, one minute?_"

I looked up and saw the conductor on the platform, ushering the last few passengers onto the nonstop train to Iwatodai. I gasped and dashed aboard, hastily yelling an apology to the conductor, and pulling my briefcase's straps clear of the closing doors. As I stooped to catch my breath, I mumbled a few choice words to Wave. It's not like the jerk could-

BUZZ!

-hear me?

"_Well now, that wasn't so hard, now was it?"_

...

Jerk.

I huffed and took a seat, and decided to decompress and review.

Okay. In the past, which means that everything that happened to me is about to happen again. Which means… What, exactly? I knew what had to be changed, but how? Shinjiro, Takeharu, Chidori… How am I-

Blarg. This is impossible. I need to plan, but not here. I need to think this through calmly, first chance I get. I will change my fate…

But how? The more I thought about it, the less sense it made. For Shinjiro, we defeated the Full Moon Shadow, but we barely got to him in time to save him. And even then, only barely. The doctors called it a miracle…

Takeharu… How do I worm my way out of that?

And Chidori…

No.

Keep calm. You're a hero, remember? You kicked Nyx's ass once already, you can do it again. You just need some time to figure things out, that's all.

Okay, first. The source of our problems is Ikutsuki. Without him, Shinji doesn't get the pills, Strega has no information, Takeharu lives…

Okay, then what? Kill Ikutsuki? I can hardly do that. Maybe…

…Expose him. That's an idea. If I do, The Kirijo Group might do my dirty work. But where do I get the proof? The video of Yukari's Dad is the only proof that could exist, right? Unless I-

…Crap. Sneak into-

Okay, calm down. I'll figure this out. I have a skeleton of a plan- I just need to refine it.

BUZZ!

Oh, joy.

"_Don't think about it. You seem stressed."_

Really? What clued you in?

"_You're all tense, silly. Take a nap."_

"Okay, can you read my mind?"

"_Yep."_

Unexpectedly candid.

"_Me in a nutshell! Now take a nap."_

I rolled my eyes. Arguing with this guy was like an internet fight; you got nowhere, and you feel a sinking suspicion that it's making you look like an idiot.

But a nap? No way.

"_Suit yourself. Keep the phone by the way, and don't lose it."_

Okay, I have a complete stranger texting me randomly and he's telling me to take a nap.

After asking someone, I realized that I had seven hours in my ride to Iwatodai.

…Nap sounds good…

* * *

I woke up after banging my head against a pole, and briefly wondered if I was destined to always wake up with a headache. I picked up my stuff and walked out, still rubbing the sleep out of my eyes. I stood in the station and took in the familiar state of the station. There were the trashcans, the gleaming tiles that the janitors worked so hard to keep clean, the smell of food, the ads on the wall...

...And the vending machine that had "chicken" carved into the side. I never figured that one out.

But the clock caught my attention.

11:59.

Ten.

Nine.

Eight.

Seven.

Six.

Five.

Four.

Three.

Two.

One.

The streetlights went dark, and the world fell into shades of green. Blood covered the floor, the walls, and any water turned into blood.

…This is real.

…I'm in…

…The past.

* * *

I walked towards the dorms, dragging the pull suitcase with me. I relied on the map I had with me to get to the dorms the first time, but the dorms were practically my second home. My legs steered me there without me knowing.

Ah, man, now I gotta talk to Pharos. He's a nice kid, but it's a bit draining, talking to him. When I got to the doors, I opened them up like I was coming home from the arcade at Paulownia Mall. As I expected, Pharos was-

… Five foot ten, and dressed like a hipster.

Huh.

He looked up right at me and smiled, like he knew me. He pulled a phone from his pocket. It was silver with light up, blue trim-

Wait.

No way.

He pressed a few buttons, and the phone in my pocket vibrated. I didn't answer. I think I had a pretty good idea who it was.

He smiled, and spoke:

"Hello, Miss Arisato. My name is Wave."

…As if life weren't already complicated.

* * *

Only gonna get worse.

Read and review. If this is horrible, tell me. Seriously, I need to improve and I know it.

...But, forgive me if I hold out for positive reviews. Maybe stories like this aren't for me, who knows.

Still, I'll stick with it for a bit and work on it. You never know.

Sincerely,

-Funny.


	3. Chapter 3

Reviews!

JackFrostDoll- Buckle up, then. Glad you're here.

No time to play this one safe. I feel like pushing my boundaries, and I want you to tell me what you all think. No holding back, okay?

Let's do this thing! Time to sink or swim!

I do not own Persona 3.

Sincerely,

-Funny.

P.S.- This should be good...

* * *

Okay. Let's recap real quick here.

I was in The Great Seal, when all of the sudden I get brought back to life one year in the past, give or take a few months. To make matters even more complicated, I have recently discovered that someone calling himself "Wave" is throwing himself into the mix all of the sudden. Where he was when I did all this the first time is beyond me. So, for those of us who are just now joining in on my merry adventure, I have, essentially, just met the man responsible for all of my problems thus far. If anyone's curious, he's wearing black slacks, a white button-up shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows, a jet black dress vest, black dress shoes, and black socks. Oh, and a black trilby. Or is it a fedora…?

Eh, whatever.

I briefly entertained the idea of strangling him, but the thought of being without answers killed that desire fairly quick. Instead, I opted to talk it out. You catch more flies with honey than vinegar, anyway.

Folding my arms and staring at him, I figured I should initiate the conversation.

"I figured you'd be taller, Wave."

He smiled. "I get that a lot."

"So, just what exactly is going on here?" I growled, failing to contain my anger in a severe way. "You've been giving me the runaround, and I think I deserve some answers."

Wave raised an eyebrow. "Well, alright then. Ask away, but you have about…" He paused to check his watch. "Three minutes? Oh, but before we do that…"

He tapped the coffee table from his seat and my new phone vibrated. I flicked it open. On the screen were those words that started it all:

"I chooseth this fate of mine own free will."

Just below it was a box for entering text.

"Last chance. If you wanna back out now, go right ahead."

No way, jerk.

Before he could react, I typed out my name in the fields.

"Things are about to change." I grumbled as I typed.

"You have no idea how right you are, sister."

I looked up at Wave. That did not sound good.

"What do you mean by that?"

"I mean what I said. Things are going to change." He said simply, looking at his nails. "Now, I believe you had questions?"

Okay. Answer time.

"Who are you?"

"Concerned third party. Next question."

"You can't seriously expect me to-"

"Two minutes. Tick tock tick tock."

I sighed. I take back what I said about the internet fight. He's more like arguing with a brick wall.

"Is everything back to the way it was?"

"Yes and no. You'll find out."

"Do you always answer every question with a frustrating half-answer?"

"Yes! Oh, and one minute left. Last question!" he chortled, like he had heard a wonderful joke.

"…Glorious." I grumbled.

…Time for the million dollar question, I guess.

"Is this possible?"

He stopped laughing at that. He leaned forward in his seat, and folded his hands, resting his elbows on his knees.

"…That's up to you." He said quietly. "It's just like last time… you can fail, or succeed."

"…Okay." I mumbled.

I can do this.

"Well!" he said suddenly, jumping out of the chair and walking to the door rather quickly. "Have to go get some more things set up, and then I have to work on my… solutions. Say hi to Mika for me, or, on second thought, don't."

He walked out without another word, and the world returned to normal. The lights flipped back on, and the familiar sound of the dorm's air conditioning kicked back into life. I looked at the door, dumbfounded.

…Mika?

"Don't move."

I whirled around to face the voice, expecting Yukari…

…But what I expected and what I got were two different things. The girl standing in front of me was wearing the standard Gekkoukan High Uniform, but she wasn't wearing the whatever-it-was that passed for a tie, and the top button of the blouse- or button-up- was undone, showing off her collarbone (but not much else), and she was wearing black pants instead of the skirt.

But her face was what caught my eyes. She looked… A lot like Yukari, but… something about her was definitely NOT Yukari. Her short, dark brown hair was tousled in a weird way that swept her hair into her left eye, and her brown eyes were much darker than Yukari's were.

…Aaaaand she's pointing her evoker straight at my face. It's a good thing I was shocked at not-Yukari's appearance, or I would have looked way too blasé for having a gun- or at least, what looked like one- pointed at my face.

Okay. First test. How do I worm my way out of this?

"Hands where I can see them." She said in an unwavering tone of voice. Her voice was gravelly, and a little low, but still unmistakably female.

Okay, play along. I slowly raised my hands up in the "I surrender" gesture.

And that's when my way out appeared in a grand deus ex Kirijo.

"Takeba. Stand down."

…Takeba? Was this tough-as-nails looking girl Yukari after all? I could get used to a badass Yukari.

Then, that picture perfect redhead walked down the steps. My senpai, Mitsuru Kirijo.

I got to hand it to her- she just met me (again), and here she was, greeting me like an old friend.

"I didn't think you'd arrive so late." She said, a thin smile touching her face. May-Or-May-Not-Be-Yukari looked at her.

"We were expecting her?" she said, placing the Evoker in a shoulder holster. Mitsuru nodded.

"Yes. This is Hamuko Arisato. She will be staying here with us until we can find her proper accommodations in the girl's dorm."

The girl just looked at me.

"If you say so." She mumbled, relaxing her posture into a slouch.

Mitsuru looked at me.

"Allow me to make introductions. I am Mitsuru Kirijo. This is Mika Takeba." Mika nodded and held out her hand.

"Hey." She said, smiling. I shook her hand. She was awfully chipper for someone pointing a not-quite-gun at me five seconds ago. She noticed my gaze drifting to the shoulder holster.

"Don't worry- just an analogue. Can't even shoot or take bullets."

I nodded my understanding- and nearly nodded off. I guess The Dark Hour tuckered me out more than I care to admit. Of course, Mitsuru noticed.

"Takeba. Could you show Ms. Arisato to her bed? I have a few things to do." Mitsuru said.

"Sure thing. Hey, lemme get that for you." Without another word, Mika took my bag, and started rolling it away from me. Stifling a yawn, I followed her up to the third floor, where the girls stayed.

"Hey." Mika waved her hand in front of my face. "You still with me?"

I mumbled something. Can't remember what.

"Ah, geez." She sighed. I heard the sound of a door unlocking, and Mika pushed me into the room.

"Go to bed. Worry about everything tomorrow." She said. I just groaned and crawled under the sheets, feeling myself lose consciousness.

"See you in the morning. I'll give you your room key then, 'kay?"

I mumbled an affirmative to Mika, and I fell asleep.

…Mika, huh.

* * *

Before you all ask whether or not I wrote Yukari out...

...I must warn you I can be tight-lipped when I want to be. I'm kind of mean like that, you know. But still, what do you guys think about this? I think it's brilliant, and I'm gonna run with it, but I wanna know what you all think.

So, please leave a review and tell me what you think, yeah? It really helps me out, and I do try to respond to my reviews, so it's a win-win, I suppose. So, why not?

Well, that's about all I have to say here. Goodnight, people!

Sincerely,

-Funny.


	4. Chapter 4

Blugh. Sorry. It's been a long time and I have no excuse. I wrote myself into a corner, but I got out of it. Really though, sorry.

I'm sorry it took so long. Thanks for being patient.

Reviewer Response Time!

JackFrostDoll: I hope you keep reading, man.

I do not own Persona 3 Portable.

Sincerely,

-Funny.

* * *

Not much to say about my sleep that night, other than the weird dream about Mika and I raising Mitsuru as our child.

My subconscious is messed up. Anyway.

I woke up the increasingly louder and louder sounds from my alarm clock, which I accepted as a kind reminder to "get out of bed before Mitsuru makes you". I shambled out of my bed, and realized that I had, in fact, fallen asleep in my uniform.

Well, nuts. I smell all weird now. I guess I should have changed into PJs.

_Knock Knock!_

Oh, hello there.

"Yo! It's Mika! You up in there?"

I yawned in response. It must have been a real doozy of a yawn, too, because Mika actually responded, and I heard chuckling through the door.

"I hear that. C'mon. We gotta get ready."

I opened the door and saw Mika standing there in blue pajamas, holding a bucket.

"C'mon. Let's get you presentable for the big day." She chuckled, shaking the bucket, which I noticed was full of soap and shampoo.

Hang on.

I looked around the bedroom: there was a small room here for showers here last time, so where…?

"Sorry."

I looked over at Mika, who did indeed have "Sorry" written all over her face.

"Showers are in the bathroom: c'mon." She said, walking over to the spiral staircase. I followed her.

"Seriously?" I said, more out of disbelief than in embarrassment. "I thought that there were individual showers."

Mika laughed at that. "Nope. Only the great and powerful Mitsuru Kirijo gets that pleasure." We started to walk down the stairs, the bucket rattling as the soaps jiggled around in there. "So we commoners get stuck with the showers. There are curtains, if that's what you're worried about, though." I shook my head, suppressing another yawn.

Mika looked back, looking more than a little concerned.

"You awake?" she asked, pausing on the stairs. I nodded.

"Yeah. A shower will do the trick."

Mika smiled.

"Been there before."

* * *

Okay, the shower worked for about five seconds. I officially feel like crap now. I was yawning the whole morning, and I darn near fell asleep twice after getting dressed. The morning was not off to a good start.

Well, for a minute, anyway.

"Hey!"

I looked to my right and saw Mika waving around a lime-green aluminum can.

…No way. Is that…?

"Here's what Doctor Takeba prescribes for that drowsiness of yours." She said with a knowing smirk. She turned the can slightly, and I saw the white letters.

…Yawn-B-Gone! No way!

Okay, Mika is the best. Nobody besides the best would give up a Yawn-B-Gone. I popped the tab and drank up, and let me tell you, whoever makes this should be given a medal, because the sleepies just went away. As the shocking lime taste died down, I turned to thank her, but she just waved it off.

"No prob. Consider it a 'Welcome' gift. Now c'mon. Let's get going." The two of us walked to the front door together, and stepped out into the early morning. The sky was a little dark, but it was the "early-morning" kind of dark.

"What time is it?" I said as I looked at Mika. She let out a soft hum as she thought.

"Maybe five thirty?"

What!? That was way early! Classes started in two hours at seven thirty, and it was a twenty-minute trip at best! I stared at her, and she stared right back.

"Hey, I wanna be able to show you around and figure out where you go for classes. Not to mention I hate there only being standing room on the monorail."

…Dang it. She's being nice, but I need none of that. I knew the school like the back of my hand, I knew my class, and I didn't mind standing.

Even so, gotta play along. If I navigate the school like I drew up the plans, eyebrows will raise. Graceful, red, beautifully proportioned, "behind-these-eyebrows-are-a-mind-that-can-make-life-extremely-difficult" eyebrows.

…

Mitsuru, if you don't follow.

"Got it, thanks."

"You're welcome."

We were about to go out when we heard a bustle of activity behind us. Mika turned before I could.

"Mornin' 'Hiko. Going for a run?" she asked. I turned and saw the Champ himself: Akihiko Sanada, decked out in the Gekkoukan High track suit and a pair of worn running shoes.

"Yep." He said with that small smile that seemed a permanent part of his face. "Going to school?"

"Figured I'd show the new girl around." Her face lit up in realization. "You two haven't met yet, have you?"

"Nah…" Akihiko mumbled, staring right at me. His eyes were just as grey as I'd remembered.

"Well then, let me. 'Hiko, Hamuko. Hamuko, meet Akihiko Sanada. School boxing champion- undefeated." She said the last part with a grin. "At least, in the ring."

Akihiko blushed at that. "Will you stop bringing that up?" he snapped, brow furrowing in annoyance.

Mika grinned. "Never." She chuckled at his expression, while Akihiko sighed and walked past us, speeding up into a brisk jog when his feet hit the sidewalk.

I looked at her. "What was that about?" I asked.

She grinned again. "Sorry, promised I wouldn't tell." And with that, she started to walk away, leaving me to follow.

* * *

I never rode the first monorail of the day, and frankly, it was a weird experience. There was nobody in our car except a few overachievers working away in their notebooks, and counting them, we were five. It was almost eerily quiet, and if Mika weren't sitting right next to me, I'd think I was alone. Of course, we weren't like that for long.

The door slid open, and five pairs of eyes found Mitsuru Kirijo. Three of those pairs went straight back to their notebooks.

Was that girl over there blushing?

Huh.

"You're up early, Takeba." Mitsuru noted, standing a few feet from our seats. Mika nodded in reply.

"Figured I'd show the new girl around." She grunted, shifting in her seat. "Not to mention we actually get seats."

Mitsuru hummed in response and looked at me. "I'm sure you'll find that Gekkoukan High is a fine school. If your homeroom teacher is in, I suggest heading to the faculty office."

I nodded, like that wasn't already on my to-do list. It really stunk- once you got to know her, Mitsuru was a really good friend. And here I was, walking on eggshells around her because the girl had deductive power that could easily rival Batman. The woman in question excused herself, and moved to the car ahead of us.

Getting over that, I shuffled into a comfortable position in my seat and just decided to enjoy the ride. Yukari was right: It felt like we were gliding across the ocean. Mika, on the other hand, just stayed quiet. She was a nice girl, but I couldn't help but feel like they were both tiptoeing around the more delicate subjects, namely, S.E.E.S.

Not surprising, I suppose. I also suppose we are in need of a subject change.

"Takeba-san?" Mika turned her head at my voice, a little surprised. She waved her hand around.

"Mika is fine. Don't worry about it." She said.

"Okay. How do you know A- Sanada-senpai and Kirijo-senpai?"

Mika hummed, probably thinking about her answer.

"I wouldn't say I 'know' Kirijo, but all of us are in the same club- the dorm is for the group members." She added in an afterthought. "As for 'Hiko, we kinda have similar interests."

"Like what?" I asked. Mika grinned.

"We both know how to hit things really hard." She chuckled.

I made an "ah" noise and we fell into silence again. Mika turned around in her seat to look out the window. She frowned, scanning the horizon, then her expression cleared.

"Hey, check it." She said pointing. I followed her finger and gasped. Gekkoukan was a beautiful school, but seeing it in the sunrise was awesome. It cast a bright light, and it almost hurt to look at. It was hard to reconcile the gleaming walls of the school with the silent horror of Tartarus.

"Beautiful, isn't it?" she grinned, squinting against the reflected light.

"Yeah…" I agreed in silent awe. I watched it grow closer, until we eventually pulled into the station.

"Come on. Let's see it up close." Mika said, pushing herself out of her seat and picking up her bag.

* * *

The school's main entryway was almost empty, this early before classes started. The people who were with us found their classes on the bulletin board, and then left to find them.

"Come on." Mika mumbled, switching out her shoes and moving towards the bulletin board. Finding my class was nothing special (considering I knew where to look), and Mika pointed down the hall to where the faculty office was.

"Think you can make it?" Mika asked, glancing at her watch. I looked at her.

"I'll manage. Got somewhere to be?" I asked, and Mika nodded.

"Yeah. Gotta talk to the Empress. Sorry. Gotta cut the tour short." She grumbled. I guessed she meant Mitsuru when she said the Empress. I told her it was no problem.

Looks like her disdain for Mitsuru isn't any less than Yukari's was. That won't be good.

She looked up and smiled, before saying goodbye and dashing off.

Well, faculty office time. Feet, do your duty.

* * *

I looked around, taking in the familiar sights, my eyes landing on the person I wanted to talk to. As if sensing my gaze, she turned to look at me, and smiled.

"Well. You're an early bird." She said as she got to her feet and picked up a file from her desk.

"I try, Sensei." I grinned. Ms. Toriumi was the best teacher I ever had. You just can't help but smile around her.

"Enthusiastic, too. I think we'll get along just fine." She chuckled before opening up her file and flipping around.

"You should be here, in my class…" She kept scanning, before snapping her fingers.

"Hamuko Arisato, right?" she said, reading the paper. She gave a thoughtful hum. "You've been to a lot of different places…" she mumbled. "Back in 1999-" her voice was cut off by a gasp, and she closed the file, looking down.

"I'm sorry. I guess I never got around to reading that." She mumbled, looking more than a little guilty. I waved my hand.

"It's okay. You couldn't have known, Sensei." That seemed to cheer her up a little.

"Well then," she said shaking off the last bit of awkwardness. "There's a bit of time, so why don't I give you the grand tour?"

I smiled at her. "Okay, Sensei."

* * *

The grand tour didn't amount to much, as I knew where everything was, and the layout of the school was, as Junpei had put it once, "idiot-proof".

Of course, when it got close to class time, we were called to the auditorium to listen to headmaster's speech.

Fun.

I wound up plopping down next to nobody in particular. To be honest, I zoned out completely, not paying attention to anything at all.

Well, until I was poked on the shoulder.

I turned to look at the poker. It was a girl, probably in my grade, with short brown hair and brown eyes.

"Yes?" I asked politely.

"Uh, a friend of mine told me that you came to school with Takeba-san today." She said, sort of stumbling over her words.

I get the feeling I won't like where this is going.

"What about it?" I asked.

"Uh, well, I heard she's good friends with Akihiko-Senpai." Oh boy. "Do you know if there's anything going on between them?"

Oh boy.

"No." I turned around, not looking at her.

Rude? Yes. But I can't stand people like that.

If you have a question, ask. It's not that hard...

* * *

The assembly was over soon after, and a relatively normal school day followed. Just the first day. Nothing fancy.

Well, there was one thing:

"Yo, Sensei!" a male voice called.

I looked over to the teacher to find Junpei Iori talking to Ms. Toriumi.

"So, how far have you gotten?" he asked, with a grin on his face.

She returned the smile. "Stuck on a slider puzzle, and I keep shooting the girl I'm trying to escort."

Junpei gave a grimace. "It only gets worse." He chuckled.

Toriumi gave him a flat look. "It can't get worse than seeing a 'Game Over' screen every five seconds."

Junpei smiled. "It does." He looked over, and saw me.

"Catch ya later, Sensei!"

"See you, Iori." She chuckled, walking out the door.

Junpei walked over to me and gave me a smile.

"'Sup?" he asked.

I couldn't help but smile.

"Not much. You?"

"Same here! So you settled in yet?"

"Pretty much. Nice setup, here."

"I know, right?" he said. "Pretty much everything you need around here!"

"So, why'd you come over here?" I asked.

"Well…" he began, speaking in a friendly tone, "I know how tough it is, being the new kid, so I just came over to say 'hey'- ow!" he added, after somebody punched him lightly on the arm.

"Up to your old tricks, eh, Cappy?" I looked over and saw Mika, grinning.

"Hey, nothing going on here! Just talking. Not a crime, is it?" he said, grinning with her.

"Only if you say the wrong thing." She said. She turned to me. "How'd your day go?"

"Just fine." I said. "You two know each other?"

Junpei thought about that. "Yeah. About… what was it? Four years now?"

Mika tapped her chin. "About that long, yeah."

Junpei smiled. "We're as thick as thieves! Our bonds cannot be broken!"

Mika grinned. "Quiet, kid. The shippers will hear you."

The two of them laughed.

"Well!" Junpei said suddenly, clapping his hands together. "Quittin' time! Now what?"

"I vote we leave." Mika said.

"Music to my ears." Junpei smiled.

* * *

Junpei ended up walking us back to the dorms, talking the whole way. We didn't talk about anything interesting, other than Junpei's apparent friendship with Ms. Toriumi.

"So, you're friends with our homeroom teacher?" I asked out of curiosity.

"Oh, Sensei? Yeah. We found out we were playing the same online game, had a good laugh about it, and we started just talking about video games whenever we had the chance." He said. Junpei just seemed to make friends without trying.

I hummed, and we moved on. We kept walking, until we reached the doors. Junpei said goodbye, and we walked in.

Mika stretched. "Jeez. I'm bushed. What about you?" she asked, walking around before flopping down on the sofa.

"Still up for a bit more excitement, here." I said.

"Yawn-B-Gone will do that to you." She chuckled.

I stared at her for a bit. She wasn't a thing like Yukari, personality-wise. Mika was self-assured and confident.

"You okay?" she asked.

"Oh, uh…"

C'mon, brain, think of an excuse for staring!

"This girl behind me at the assembly said something about you and Akihiko-senpai." I blurted.

She sighed, at looked at me with a sort of pained-yet amused look on her face.

"That'll happen. She think we're seeing each other?" she asked.

"Pretty much." I admitted. Mika laughed.

"Thought so. If anyone asks you again, slap them in the face. Me and 'Hiko are just friends. Workout buddies, occasionally." She said.

"Oh." I said. "Okay."

Mika looked at the clock.

"There's still time before the Empress gets back. Wanna watch TV?" she asked, picking the remote up from its spot on the coffee table.

I shook my head. "I'm good. I'm going to study, then go to bed."

Mika shrugged. "Suit yourself."

* * *

That was a lie. I wasn't studying.

I was busy racking my brain for a way to get rid of the Full Moon Shadows.

Let's see. In a few days, Magician attacks the dorm. That's how long I have to plan.

I sat there and though for what seemed like ages, but nothing came to me. My hand brushed against a lump in my jacket pocket.

Maybe Wave will know.

_Bzzzz!_

Right on cue! I flipped the phone open.

_Don't worry about the Shadows. All you have to do is defeat them._

I smiled, but then I thought of something.

What's the catch?

_Bzzzz!_

_Unfortunately, you have to do it in a special way. For Magician, here's what you have to do: after the battle is over, you just have to not pass out. Should be easy: your body is used to summoning a Persona. This will be child's play for you!_

What will that do?

…

I guess I'm not getting any more answers.

Sighing, I flipped through a few notes I had taken before calling it a night.

One day down, so many more to go.

Here's hoping I make it.

* * *

Well. That took a while. I hope it was worth the wait for you guys.

I try to get one done earlier next time.

See you.

Sincerely,

-Funny.

P.S.- Merry Christmas, everyone! Ho, Ho, Ho, and all that good stuff!


End file.
